[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 99 (Monday, May 24, 2010)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 28760-28762]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-12384]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

50 CFR Part 622

[Docket No. 100121040-0177-01]
RIN 0648-AY58


Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; 
Shrimp Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic; Revisions To 
Allowable Bycatch Reduction Devices

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the framework procedures for adjusting 
management measures of the Fishery Management Plan for the Shrimp 
Fishery of the Gulf of Mexico (Gulf FMP) and the Fishery Management 
Plan for the Shrimp Fishery of the South Atlantic region (South 
Atlantic FMP) NMFS provisionally recertifies two bycatch reduction 
devices (BRDs) and revises the construction and installation 
requirements of one of these BRD designs in the southeastern shrimp 
fishery. The intended effect of this rule is to improve bycatch 
reduction in the shrimp fishery and better meet the requirements of 
National Standard 9.

DATES: This rule is effective June 23, 2010.

ADDRESSES: Copies of supporting documentation for this final rule, 
which includes a regulatory impact review and a regulatory flexibility 
act analysis may be obtained from Steve Branstetter, Southeast Regional 
Office, NMFS, 263 13th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701-5505.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steve Branstetter, telephone: 727-824-
5305.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The fishery for shrimp in the exclusive 
economic zone (EEZ) of the Gulf is managed under the FMP prepared by 
the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council. The fishery for shrimp 
in the EEZ of the South Atlantic is managed under the FMP prepared by 
the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council. The FMPs are implemented 
under the authority of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 
Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) by regulations at 50 CFR part 
622.

Background

    Regulations implementing Amendment 2 to the South Atlantic Shrimp 
FMP (73 FR 18536, April 16, 1997) established BRD requirements in the 
South Atlantic EEZ. The rule established a certification criterion, 
descriptions of BRD designs and configurations allowed for use in the 
South Atlantic shrimp fishery, as well as procedures to develop and 
test new BRDs for certification.
    Regulations implementing Amendment 9 to the Gulf Shrimp FMP were 
published April 14, 1998 (63 FR 18139), and established a requirement, 
with limited exceptions, for the use of certified BRDs in shrimp trawls 
towed in the Gulf EEZ shoreward of the 100-fm (183-m) depth contour 
west of 85[deg] 30' W. longitude (western Gulf), the approximate 
longitude of Cape San Blas, FL. The rule established descriptions of 
BRD designs and configurations allowed for use in the western Gulf 
shrimp fishery.

[[Page 28761]]

    To better address the requirements of National Standard 9 of the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act, regulations implementing Amendment 10 to the Gulf 
FMP (69 FR 1538, January 9, 2004) required BRDs in shrimp trawls fished 
in the EEZ east of 85[deg] 30' W. longitude (eastern Gulf).
    In accordance with the BRD framework procedures of the Gulf FMP, 
NMFS recently modified the existing BRD certification criterion for the 
western Gulf (73 FR 8219, February 13, 2008) to be consistent with the 
criterion for the eastern Gulf and South Atlantic. The new standardized 
certification criterion for the Gulf of Mexico and the South Atlantic 
specifies data must demonstrate a BRD achieves a 30-percent reduction 
in the weight of finfish bycatch to be certified for use in the 
southeastern shrimp fishery. In addition, this rule established a 
provisional certification criterion. To be provisionally certified, on 
a time-limited basis, the data must demonstrate that there is at least 
a 50-percent probability that the BRD reduces the weight of finfish 
bycatch by 25 percent.
    In accordance with these new criteria, NMFS provisionally certified 
the Extended Funnel BRD for use in the Gulf of Mexico, and the 
Composite Panel BRD for use in both the Gulf of Mexico and the South 
Atlantic. By regulation, the provisional certification of both BRDs 
automatically expired on February 16, 2010. However, no new information 
exists regarding the effectiveness of these BRDs as they are used in 
the fisheries that would indicate if the BRDs have been improved, or 
that they do not continue to meet the provisional certification 
requirement. Collection of new data and sufficient industry-level 
evaluation of these BRDs was hindered, in part, because of delays in 
getting compatible regulations allowing their use in state waters off 
Texas and state waters off both the Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic 
coasts of Florida. Texas developed compatible regulations allowing the 
use of these two BRDs in November 2008; Florida in December 2009. Thus, 
fishermen in these states have not had the opportunity to use these new 
BRDs or to make improvements to them. In addition, net shops that would 
be manufacturing these BRDs needed to wait on the final regulatory 
specifications before they could begin producing the BRDs, thus there 
was an initial shortage of these BRDs.
    Therefore, to address the expiration of the initial provisional 
certification of these two BRDs and allow for sufficient evaluation of 
these designs by industry, on April 20, 2010, NMFS published a proposed 
rule (75 FR 20548) to provisionally recertify the extended funnel BRD 
and the composite panel BRD and revise the construction and 
installation requirements of the composite panel BRD design in the 
southeastern shrimp fishery.
    Because no new information exists to decertify these BRDs, and 
because of the limited time fishermen in two major shrimping states 
have had to evaluate these BRDs, this final rule renews the provisional 
certification for these two BRD types for an additional two years 
through May 24, 2012. This final rule also revises the construction and 
installation requirements for the Composite Panel BRD in order to 
provide more flexibility for what material and size mesh may be used to 
construct this particular BRD design. The intended effect of this rule 
is to maintain adequate bycatch reduction in the shrimp fishery and 
better meet the requirements of National Standard 9.
    NMFS received no comments on the proposed rule and, therefore, no 
changes have been made in this final rule.

Classification

    The Administrator, Southeast Region, NMFS, determined that this 
final rule is necessary for the conservation and management of the 
southeastern shrimp fishery and that it is consistent with the 
Magnuson-Stevens Act and other applicable laws.
    This final rule has been determined to be not significant for 
purposes of Executive Order 12866.
    The Chief Counsel for Regulation of the Department of Commerce 
certified to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business 
Administration during the proposed rule stage that this action would 
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities. The factual basis for this certification was published in the 
proposed rule and is not repeated here. No comments were received 
regarding this certification. As a result, a regulatory flexibility 
analysis was not required and none was prepared.

List of Subjects in 50 CFR Part 622

    Fisheries, Fishing, Puerto Rico, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Virgin Islands.

    Dated: May 18, 2010.
Eric C. Schwaab,
Assistant Administrator For Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries 
Service.

0
For the reasons set out in the preamble, 50 CFR part 622 is amended as 
follows:

PART 622--FISHERIES OF THE CARIBBEAN, GULF, AND SOUTH ATLANTIC

0
1. The authority citation for part 622 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq.

0
2. In Sec.  622.41, paragraphs (g)(3)(ii)(A) and (B) are revised to 
read as follows:


Sec.  622.41  Species specific limitations.

* * * * *
    (g) * * *
    (3) * * *
    (ii) * * *
    (A) Extended funnel--Gulf EEZ only; through May 24, 2012.
    (B) Composite Panel--Gulf EEZ and South Atlantic EEZ; through May 
24, 2012.
* * * * *

0
3. In Appendix D to part 622, section G, the first sentence of 
paragraph 2(a), and paragraph 2(b) are revised to read as follows:

Appendix D to Part 622--Specifications for Certified BRDs

* * * * *
    G. * * *
    2. * * *
    (a) * * * The webbing extension must be constructed from a 
single rectangular piece of 1 \1/2\-inch to 1 \3/4\-inch (3.8-cm to 
4.5-cm) stretch mesh with dimensions of 24 \1/2\ meshes by 150 to 
160 meshes. * * *
    (b) Funnel. The V-shaped funnel consists of two webbing panels 
attached to the extension along the leading edge of the panels. The 
top and bottom edges of the panels are sewn diagonally across the 
extension toward the center to form the funnel. The panels are 2-ply 
in design, each with an inner layer of 1 \1/2\-inch to 1 \5/8\-inch 
(3.8-cm to 4.1-cm) heat-set and depth-stretched polyethylene webbing 
and an outer layer constructed of no larger than 2-inch (5.1-cm) 
square mesh webbing (1-inch bar). The inner webbing layer must be 
rectangular in shape, 36 meshes on the leading edge by 20 meshes 
deep. The 36-mesh leading edges of the polyethylene webbing should 
be sewn evenly to 24 meshes of the extension webbing 1 \1/2\ meshes 
from and parallel to the leading edge of the extension starting 12 
meshes up from the bottom center on each side. Alternately sew 2 
meshes of the polyethylene webbing to 1 mesh of the extension 
webbing then 1 mesh of the polyethylene webbing to 1 mesh of the 
extension webbing toward the top. The bottom 20-mesh edges of the 
polyethylene layers are sewn evenly to the extension webbing on a 2 
bar 1 mesh angle toward the bottom back center forming a v-shape in 
the bottom of the extension webbing. The top 20-mesh edges of the 
polyethylene layers are sewn evenly along the bars of the extension 
webbing toward the top back center. The square mesh layers must be 
rectangular in shape and constructed of no larger than 2-inch (5.1-
cm) webbing that is 18 inches (45.7 cm) in length on the leading 
edge. The depth

[[Page 28762]]

of the square mesh layer must be no more than 2 inches (5.1 cm) less 
than the 20 mesh side of the inner polyethylene layer when stretched 
taught. The 18-inch (45.7-cm) leading edge of each square mesh layer 
must be sewn evenly to the 36-mesh leading edge of the polyethylene 
section and the sides are sewn evenly (in length) to the 20-mesh 
edges of the polyethylene webbing. This will form a v-shape funnel 
using the top of the extension webbing as the top of the funnel and 
the bottom of the extension webbing as the bottom of the funnel.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2010-12384 Filed 5-21-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-22-S